One shot Collection
by PKfyrestorm
Summary: A collection of three oneshots that take place either before the series, or in between my third story and the (upcoming) fourth and final story. I hope you enjoy them!
1. Order in the Court

Order in the Court

Abby stared at the heavy wooden doors of the courtroom and swallowed. The trial was due to begin in less than five minutes, and she was on the verge of a panic attack. Sure, saving the world was a lot harder than testifying in court, but Abby absolutely hated public speaking. Heck, even the thought of an oral presentation for class made her nervous. In a few minutes, she would have to tell a jury, which included Ultra Magnus, about how she stabbed Dreadwing with her lightsaber. She would never admit it, but Ultra Magnus low key scared her. No, scared wasn't the right word. Intimidated. That was the word she was looking for. There was always a look in his optics that made her feel like he was constantly judging her. And that made her uncomfortable. Angela looked just as nervous as Abby felt.

"We've got to try to relax," Abby said, both to herself and to her friend.

"You're right. But I keep thinking that I might condemn my partner," said Angela, looking down at the shining marble floor. Abby's stomach pinched. Dreadwing's fate depended on how the jury reacted to her story. If they reacted badly, she would never forgive herself for condemning her best friend's partner. And she knew that Angela wouldn't forgive herself for condemning him, either. Some of the lawyers stepped behind them, briefcases in hand. They looked like they would run you down with a coffee in hand, especially the women. Abby knew that it was nearly time to go in. She practiced her slow breathing. She knew that she needed to look calm when she arrived in the courtroom. Angela reached over and squeezed Abby's hand. All of her nervousness was released in that one tense squeeze. Abby squeezed her hand back, trying to reassure her friend. The doors opened, and the two walked in side-by side, flanked by the lawyers. Abby stared straight ahead, trying not to look at the jury too closely. Dreadwing was already there, seated below the judge. His shoulders were scrunched, but his optics darted across the courtroom. His gaze met Abby's. She stared back, hoping that he could read the emotion in her eyes and the words that she wanted to say: I'm sorry. Dreadwing nodded ever so slightly, and a bit of the weight left Abby's shoulders. He understood. Then, he shifted his gaze to Angela. She mouthed something to him, something along the lines of "Please forgive me if this goes wrong." Abby placed her hand on Angela's shoulder and gently guided her to the witness stand. Angela stared at Dreadwing for a few seconds more, and then followed her to their seats. There were many, many faces in the spectator section, but Abby recognized half of them. The Autobots were there, seated near their respective humans and/or sparkmates. Arcee sat next to Bumblebee, gently bouncing Jaclyn in her lap. In front of Bee sat Raf, who was turned around in his seat playing peek-a-boo with Jaclyn. Optimus and Elita were seated to the left of Arcee, with Arielle and Orion on the right. On Arielle's left sat Smokescreen, followed by Bulkhead, Ratchet, Knockout, Neron, Megatron, and Starscream. Megatron and Starscream?! Why were they there? And who let them come? Abby's gaze fell to the handcuffs that bound both of their hands. That was probably the only reason why they were even allowed to spectate. Jack, June, Fowler, Tess, and Miko were seated in a row side by side, with Jack in front of Arcee and Miko in front of Bulkhead. The Donersons and her parents were on the opposite side of Miko, talking quietly amongst themselves.

Abby blinked. Where was Will? He was supposed to be watching! She swallowed her panic and kept looking, this time in the bot section. Will was sitting on Knockout's shoulder, talking to Neron and gesticulating wildly. Abby smirked. Looks like he was adjusting well to the presence of the bots.

"All rise! The honorable Judge Stone is presiding!" announced one of the lawyers. The entire court stood up, including Dreadwing. It sure was a lucky thing that the witness stand was elevated, because if it wasn't, Abby would be too short to see everyone in the courtroom.

"Order!" commanded Judge Stone. Everyone sat down.

"Dreadwing how do you plead in this case?" asked Stone.

Dreadwing's expression remained neutral. "I plead that I will be given whatever punishment they see fit," he replied, in a serious but civil tone.

"Very well," nodded Judge Stone.

One of the lawyers stood up. "I would like to cross-examine Miss Abigail Sharber," he said. Abby swallowed and stood up. Everyone in the courtroom was watching her every move now. Praying that she wouldn't trip on anything, she made her way to the stand.

"What are your past encounters with Dreadwing?" asked the lawyer. Abby squared her shoulders and looked the lawyer dead in the eye, trying to ignore the stares of the court. She must not lose her nerve. "Well, my first encounter was when Angela and I were trying to escape the Decepticon mine with Arielle and Orion. We were running, fighting off the veicons as best as we could, when suddenly Dreadwing lands in front of us. I was pretty sure he was gonna attack us, so I pull out my lightsaber," she started, trying to be as clear and honest as she could.

"And then what happened?" prompted the lawyer.

"Well, Dreadwing says something like 'It is unwise for you to challenge me, but nevertheless, I must oblige' and pulls out his own sword. Before we can fight, however, I try to persuade him to let us go free. I told him that if he kills us, he'll have nothing to give to Megatron. Dreadwing then gave us an ultimatum: He would let three of us go, in exchange for one of us. I step forward and ask him if he's serious about his offer. Angela tries to talk me out of it, but I tell her that it's the only way. Dreadwing and the other veicons stand down, thinking that I surrendered. But then Ratchet shows up and starts fighting off the Veicons. I stabbed Dreadwing in the abdomen and left..." Abby trailed off, her voice failing her. For what felt like the millionth time, shame washed over her. Even after all this time, she still felt guilty about maiming Dreadwing like that, despite it being entirely self-defense. Abby risked a quick glance at her family. Her parents' eyes were widened in shock, and their mouths hung open. She hadn't told them the gory details of her adventures with them, telling herself and everyone that they would find out during the trial. But it was worse to tell them during the trial than to tell them privately, without prying eyes evaluating her testimony.

The lawyer seemed to sense her unease and moved on to the next question. "What about the second time?" he asked.

"My second encounter with Dreadwing was several hours later on the same day. I was in the Nemesis with Angela, Neron and a shrunken Starscream. We had just grabbed the reducer and ran into him. He was about to shoot at Starscream when Angela stood in front of him and convinced Dreadwing not to.

Well, I don't know if she completely convinced him, but it was enough to make him hesitate. We managed to escape, but we were being chased by Veicons. We piled in the back of Neron and he tried to drive away and dodge the shots," she began. In the corner of her eye, she could see Starscream try to stand up and leave, but Megatron shot him a glare. He hissed some sort of threat at Starscream. The seeker sat back down faster than you could say 'Jedi'. Arcee leaned over and gave Starscream a smug smirk.

"We had almost made it to safety when Neron got hit hard and we were sent flying. Angela was left dangling from a cliff, and I was trying to pull her back up. I yelled for Starscream to help me, but he ignored me and kept looking for the reducer."

Starscream was now staring at the floor of the courtroom, optics averted in shame.

"Angela let go, knowing I would be pulled down with her if she kept holding onto me. I thought she was gone..." Abby trailed off, her throat starting to constrict. The emotions that she had felt in that horrible minute when she thought Angela was gone forever came flooding back to her. She swallowed the pain and panic back down. She couldn't afford to lose her cool in front of the entire courtroom.

"Dreadwing must've seen her fall, and he caught her before she hit the ground and brought her back to safety. I owe him my friend's life and my happiness," Abby finished. The courtroom erupted into chatter, their voices sounding surprised. Angela's parents, Tess, and Ember were all glowering at Starscream, who's hands were planted on both sides of his head.

"Order!" shouted Judge Stone. The courtroom quieted down immediately. "You may proceed," said Stone, nodding to the lawyer.

"Miss Sharber, what is your current opinion of Dreadwing?" asked the lawyer.

"I think he is an honorable bot. He saved my friend's life, and I will always be grateful for that. In my humble opinion, I believe that he should be given a second chance," Abby said. A mutter rose from the jury section. She ignored it. She stood by what she said, every word of it. The lawyer nodded. "You may return to your seat, Miss Sharber. I would now like to cross examine Miss Angela Donerson," he said. Abby straightened her shoulders and walked back to the witness stand. As she passed Angela, she gave her friend's hand a little squeeze of encouragement.

"Be strong," Abby muttered, barely audibly. Angela gave her one tiny, almost imperceptible nod. All of this happened in less than three seconds. Abby sat back into her seat, relieved that her part was over with, and nervous for her friend. She looked down at her knees. Her legs were shaking uncontrollably. It was probably all that leftover adrenaline.

"Is what Miss Sharber said the truth?" asked the lawyer. Abby saw Ultra Magnus narrow his eyes a little. No doubt he was doing that during her testimony, too. Maybe it was a concentration habit. But Angela stayed cool, calm, and collected, at least on the outside.

"Yes, what Abby said is true. Dreadwing DID save me," she said.

"What did you say to him when you confronted him on the warship?" He asked.

Angela smirked.

"I told him: 'Dreadwing, killing Starscream isn't the answer. I have a sibling too, you know. A sister. I could only imagine the pain of losing her, but getting revenge won't change anything it would just lead to more grieving for others. I know you're upset about Skyquake's death, but believe me when I say...revenge won't bring him back' and he listened. Later when he had saved me from the cliff, he told me that my sister didn't the deserve the pain of losing a sibling," Angela concluded. Tess was leaning forward in her chair, eyes wide. She probably had no idea about Dreadwing's motivations for saving Angela.

"And your opinion of Dreadwing-" started the lawyer.

"Is the same as Abby's," interrupted Angela.

"You may be seated," nodded the lawyer. Angela plopped down in the seat next to Abby and let out a sigh of relief.

"You did awesome," encouraged Abby.

"Thanks," smiled Angela, a tinge of worry in her voice. Another one of the lawyers stepped up to the stand, a red bot. Abby shifted uneasily in her seat. It was time for the prosecutors to have their say. She heard Angela gulp loudly next to her. This was the part where they couldn't do a thing to help. It all depended on the jury. The bot cleared his throat. "I would like to cross-examine Wheeljack," he stated. Abby nearly choked. Angela gripped the sides of her seat so hard, her knuckles started to go pale. Abby knew what she was thinking. They both had the same horrible thought on their minds: What if one of their partners condemns the other's partner? Abby's stomach pinched at the very thought. She would feel absolutely horrible for the rest of her days if that happened. Wheeljack marched determinately to the stand.

"Wheeljack, what are your past experiences with Dreadwing?" asked the bot.

"Well, we fought a couple of times during the war, but that was pretty much it," shrugged Wheeljack.

"Elaborate, please,"said the bot, his voice stiff, "Did he commit any atrocities?"

"Not on the scale of Megatron. But, I saw many die because of him, including a comrade of mine named Seaspray," said Wheeljack. The court erupted into whispers once again.

"Order!" rapped Judge Stone. The court fell silent.

"Did he seem to have remorse for those he killed?" asked the bot.

"Not that I saw. But Dreadwing's a pretty quiet mech," Wheeljack added. Abby stole a glance at Dreadwing. He was staring straight ahead, optics focused. He didn't look nervous in the slightest; as always, he was calm and collected. But, like Wheeljack said, Dreadwing was not one to wear his spark on his sleeve.

"What is your opinion of Dreadwing?" asked the prosecutor.

"I think he's a cunning fighter, first of all. His speciality is explosives. I never thought he could change from being a cold-sparked seeker, but I think-" Wheeljack stated.

"That will do, Wheeljack, thank you," interrupted the bot. Wheeljack opened his mouth to speak, but none came out. Maybe he was thinking of a decent roast.

Abby stood up. "Your honor? I believe the beginning of your sentence interrupted the middle of his," she called at the bot. She heard someone, probably Will, snap in a Z formation.

The bot narrowed his optics at her. "That is not the proper way to-"

"Yeah, let Wheeljack finish," added Angela defiantly, standing up next to Abby. A shadow of a smirk passed on Dreadwing's face, but it was so fast that she wasn't sure if it actually happened.

"I am sorry, but we need to move on," said the bot, not sounding sorry in the slightest. Abby sat down quickly, her cheeks flushed in anger. Angela's hands were clenched into fists next to her skirt. Her eyes were practically burning a hole in the wood. Abby blinked. That look would make Starscream run for the hills. But then again, it wouldn't take much. Wheeljack sat back down.

"It was worth a shot, partner," he comforted.

Judge Stone gave the bot a sharp stare. "Lawyers, do you have any final statements before the jury meets?" she asked. The lawyer that cross-examined Abby and Angela nodded, along with the passive-aggressive bot lawyer. Stone nodded to the bot. "Blazestone, you may proceed," she said.

Blazestone turned to the jury. "You have heard the words of the witnesses. We know that Dreadwing is known to be a trickster. He may well be pulling another one right now. Countless cybertronian lives were ended under his crosshairs. Do you want it to happen again with humans? The choice is yours," he said. Angela lunged forward, but Abby pulled her back into her chair.

"Not now," she muttered to her friend.

"Right." muttered Angela, through gritted teeth.

The human lawyer stepped forward. "The words of the witnesses say there is another side to Dreadwing. A softer, more merciful side. Yes, he did end lives, but he also saved lives, both directly and indirectly. All of these bots want peace and a fresh start. Why not give it to Dreadwing?" he addressed. It took all of Abby's willpower to not stand up and start applauding. Judge Stone stood up. "Jury, you may deliberate," she said. The jury members, both bot and human, stood up and filed out of the room.

"We shall adjourn, until they return," finished Stone. The spectators stood up to stretch, along with the witnesses. Angela grabbed Abby's wrist and marched her out of the side door, all but dragging her. As soon as they were outside, Angela let out a yell of pure rage.

"Um, do you need something to punch?" asked Abby, massaging her wrist. Her friend's grip was tighter than a boa constrictor.

Angela turned. "Yes, PLEASE!" she shouted, her voice cracking.

Abby held her arm out to the side. "Do your worst," she said.

Angela balled her fist and punched Abby's purse with the force of a tsunami, nearly knocking Abby off her feet.

"Blazestone is a no good dirt bag!" Angela growled.

Abby nodded. "Tell me about it," she agreed. Angela glowered at the ground. "Did you see how he was looking at Dreadwing? He was looking at him like he was scum on the sidewalk!" she cried. Abby spat on the sidewalk. "It was despicable," she said.

Another door opened. Out came Elita, concern in her optics. "Angela, I know how you feel," she said, kneeling down to their level.

Angela looked up. "I know. But I'm not sure if the jury will have mercy on Dreadwing. In fact, the odds of that happening are low," she muttered glumly.

Elita cupped Angela's chin with her finger. "Have a little faith, Angela. The odds may be somewhat low, but don't let that stop you from hoping," she said softly.

That was almost the exact same thing that they said to Elita when they were in prison. Abby smirked. Looks like things had come full circle. Angela smiled, and hugged Elita. Elita hugged her back gently, muttering soothing-sounding words. Abby discreetly took a picture.

Angela let go. "So, what do we do now?" she asked.

"We wait," stated Abby.

A few hours later, the jury was back in the court. As Abby sat back in her seat, she began to wonder: Was that a good thing or a bad thing? Oh, please, for Angela's sake, please let Dreadwing have a second chance. Angela was like a sister to Abby, and whenever she suffered, Abby suffered with her in spirit. If anyone so much as touched her honorary sister, they would pay the price. She was quite the Mama Bear, for someone who was only a month older and six inches shorter. But that was probably because she was so protective of her brother. Ultra Magnus stepped forward to deliver the verdict. The courtroom fell dead silent. Abby reached over and gripped Angela's hand. Angela squeezed back.

"Dreadwing, after due consideration, you will be on probation for a month. After your probation period is finished, you will work as a police officer for Cybertron, since you seem to be willing to help civilians in danger. Case dismissed," Magnus announced. Angela let go of Abby's hand and hurdled over the other chairs, running over towards Dreadwing. She hugged him as tight as she could, laughing joyfully. Abby smiled and watched from afar. She didn't want to ruin their moment.

"I'm glad you're not behind bars," Angela said. Dreadwing smiled. "And I'm glad that I can still be your partner," he replied. It was weird seeing Dreadwing smile. She'd seen him smirk before, but this was a genuine smile of happiness. Abby liked to think that there would be more of them. But she knew that the coming days were gonna be tense. Megatron's trial was the next day, and then there was Starscream's. Yep, it sure wasn't going to be easy.

"I still can't believe you killed a man," said Will, leaning back on his chair. Abby glowered. "For the last time, I didn't kill Dreadwing, I stabbed him," she explained, for what felt like the millionth time. She swore he was doing it to be annoying, now. Abby scanned the courtroom again. The witnesses and Megatron still hadn't arrived yet, and she was getting anxious. Sure, she and Angela weren't witnesses this time, but Neron was. Abby knew that Neron might not bode well with the pressure. Hopefully, the lawyers wouldn't cross-examine him too harshly.

"I'm glad Blazestone won't be here," muttered Angela under her breath, "Can you imagine what would happen if he cross-examined Neron? It would not go well," she said.

"Yeah. But it would be nice to see Megatron snap him into a slim Jim," laughed Abby.

"Boy, I wish he would," agreed Angela. The middle doors opened, and the lawyers, a judge, Megatron, Neron, Optimus, and Knockout walked in.

"The honorable judge York is presiding, all rise!" announced one of the lawyers. Abby and Angela stood up along with everyone else. She felt a little sealed off, since the IGL were the only humans at the trial, save for one of the lawyers.

"I would like to cross examine Neron Altair first," said the main lawyer. Neron nodded and walked over to the stand. Megatron's optics followed his son and lingered there.

"Neron, according to Cybertronian records it says that you lived with a single mother. We have reason to doubt that..." started the lawyer.

"Yes, I did live with my mother, Ivy, but my father is indeed Megatron," Neron confirmed. A ripple of muttering went through the crowd, mostly coming from the jury and spectators. Abby didn't blame them. The spectators were all Autobots that had fought in the war. She didn't recognize a single one of them, which made her feel a little wary. Megatron, however, kept a poker face.

"And, how did he treat you when he was around?" the lawyer asked. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Raf give Megatron a nervous glance. It wasn't easy being talked about when you aren't part of the conversation.

"He wasn't around much because he was a gladiator, but when he was, he was a great father. He watched over me, fed me, we played games, he would tell me stories, all kinds of things," Neron recalled, counting on his fingers.

"Was he ever harsh to your mother?" the lawyer asked.

Miko leaned into Jack's ear. "Whoa, this just got real," she whispered. Jack nodded in agreement.

"No, he never hurt her." Neron replied, an edge in his voice. Abby raised her eyebrows. Neron usually was a big sweetie. She'd never heard that tone in his voice since he charged Arachnid. The lawyer seemed to sense Neron's uncomfort, too.

"Thank you, Mr. Altair, that is enough," she said. Neron went back to his seat. Megatron's body relaxed a little. Abby smirked. They all were protective of Neron, even Will and Tess.

"I would like to call Optimus Prime to the stand," announced the lawyer. One of the bots behind her squealed, nearly falling out of his chair. His partner pulled him back up, her optics narrowed. Optimus walked confidently to the stand. All optics and eyes in the court were glued on him. Everyone in the room, both human and bot, knew who he was. Which was both a blessing and a curse.

"I knew Megatron long before he had became a Decepticon. Never did I imagine he would become the warlord that he was, never did I imagine he would commit the atrocities that he committed. I admit, I believed that the friend that I once had was gone forever. But, he has proved me wrong. He ended the spark of Unicron, the chaos bringer, to save a world that his enemies lived in. Megatron has changed, for the better," Optimus finished.

"Thank you for your statement, sir," said the lawyer.

Will narrowed his eyes. "The lawyer didn't even ask him any questions!" he whispered.

Abby frowned back at him. "He's Optimus Prime. He doesn't need no stinkin' questions," she muttered back. Angela laughed. Jack snorted.

"Knockout, how did Megatron behave while you were a Decepticon?" asked the lawyer. Abby blinked. She didn't hear her call Knockout to the stand. Probably because she was talking to Will.

"Oh, he was absolutely crazy. Half the time, he was messing around with dark energon, and the other half, he was trying to kill the Autobots and their allies and establish universal domination," said Knockout, rubbing a grease spot off of his finish.

"Did he harm you?" the lawyer asked.

"Not that I remember. Starscream was like his personal punching bag, though, but he deserved it. I mean, he's tried to kill Megatron a lot, and he messed up my paint job!" Knockout exclaimed. Abby and Will rolled their eyes simultaneously, along with probably half of the court.

"Thank you, Knockout, you may return to your seat," said the lawyer. Another lawyer stepped up and started talking, but Abby ignored him. She was already thinking about Megatron's verdict. Megatron had done horrible things, but he also did some good things too. The question was, did the good counterbalance the bad? It was gonna be close.

"How much longer do you think they're gonna be?" moaned Miko, her face in her hands. Abby was thinking the same thing. The jury had been out for six hours, and it was getting really tiring. Tess was curled up on two chairs, sound asleep, with Ember asleep next to her. Will was trying to stay awake, but Abby knew that he wouldn't last much longer. Raf's glasses were sliding down on his face, and he was too tired to push them back up.

"I guess that means that the debate is pretty heated," shrugged Jack.

Angela checked her phone. "It's 12:15 in the morning. How much longer should we stay?" she asked.

"1 am is my limit," yawned Abby.

"Same," mumbled Raf.

The court doors opened, and the jury walked in. Despite the noise they were making, Tess was still zonked. Abby took a deep breath to steady herself. Neron looked tense and anxious, arms folded around his abdomen. Optimus' arm was on his shoulder, probably as an attempt to comfort Neron. One of the jury members stood up.

"Megatron...you have been granted a three month probation, during which you will work at a daycare center in THIS world. With supervision, of course," said the jury member. Neron let out a whoop, and started jumping up and down. Megatron smirked. Abby gave Angela a high five. Two victories. Could they make it three?

The IGL filed into the side room where they would decide Starscream's fate. Although all of the members were technically too young for jury duty, an exception had been made for this particular trial. Abby was glad that they were on the jury. She was curious to see why juries took so long to decide a verdict.

"Alright everyone, ready to decide Starscream's fate?" asked the judge. He glanced down at a sheet of paper. "According to this, he hasn't had the best reputation. The witnesses confirmed this," he continued. Abby gulped. There wasn't many comforting words from the witnesses. Especially because Arcee was a witness.

"Who votes that we send him to death row?!" shouted one of the jury members.

"Aye!" shouted at least half of the jury. Abby stared at the wall. Things weren't looking good for Starscream. Judging by the look on 'Screamer's face throughout the trial, he knew that he'd probably be condemned. And, despite everything, it made Abby pity him a little. But pity did not change what he'd done. She was torn. On one hand, Starscream had committed horrible crimes, and deserved punishment. But on the other hand, there was a little voice in the back of her head that just wanted to be merciful to her enemies.

Tess looked down at Ember. Ember gave her friend a tiny nod. What was she planning to do? "Um, I have something to say," muttered Tess. But Abby could barely hear her over the arguing of the jury. Miko was standing on a table, waving her fist in the air and yelling something unintelligible.

"EVERYONE, SHUT UP!" roared Predaking, seeing Tess' struggle. The room went dead silent.

"Can I say something?" asked Tess.

"Go ahead," said one of the jury members. Angela gave Abby an, "I have no idea what she is doing" look. Abby swallowed. Hopefully, Tess knew what she was doing.

Tess hopped onto the table, next to Miko, who jumped down hastily. She cleared her throat.

"I know Starscream has done some, questionable things in his past, and I for one know some can't be forgiven. But he got up and helped save my world, our world, for some of you. I didn't know what to think them...but I know what to think of that now. Starscream could have killed, or harmed us at anytime and he didn't make a move. Ember here is may partner and she was abandoned by Shockwave. Predaking however, gave her another chance and is gave Ember a family." Tess glanced at Predaking, who looked both surprised and impressed by her words.

"I would feel guilty if I didn't give Starscream another chance, it wouldn't feel right to me. I hope you will at least take this into consideration," Tess finished. She jumped off the table and walked back over to the rest of the IGL. Angela started applauding. Then, Abby started. Pretty soon the whole room, including the ones who were condemning Starscream, was applauding.

"Give her a cookie!" shouted Will.

Abby laughed. "So, we have our verdict?" she asked.

Angela grinned. "I think so," she said.

"Definitely," confirmed Jack.

Starscream's wings were dropping by the time the jury got back. He didn't even look up. He knew what they were going to say before they could even say it. What he did question was how long he'd be in prison for. Or whether or not that he'd live or not. Starscream sighed, his wings lowering, he now felt something he loathed.

Guilt.

He felt guilty for killing all those bots, especially Cliffjumper, ignoring Angela when she most needed him, and every single thing he'd done to invoke someone's wrath. He felt guilty for thinking little about the humans. Who knew that they would eventually have his life in their tiny hands? He never would have guessed that. If he could do it all again...oh, how things would be different.

Raf stepped up to the podium. "Starscream..." He started. The seeker held his breath. Never had he wanted to live more in his life.

"You are to receive a year and a half probation and house arrest, with some exceptions, and will be watched carefully by both the Autobots and the IGL," Raf concluded. Starscream choked. Was that really it?! By the allspark, he was free! He could make better decisions now! Almost as in a dream, his cuffs were off, and he could leave. Though, there was a tracking beacon on his ankle. He'd endured worse. This was nothing. Predaking stepped in front of him, with the youngest human, Tess, on his shoulder. She was glaring at him. Great, now she was gonna yell at him and tell him he didn't deserve to be free.

"Look, Starscream, I stood up for you in front of the jury, and let's just say that you owe your freedom to me," Tess said, leaning towards him.

"Um, thank you?" said Starscream, confused.

Tess glared even harder. "Don't thank me! Do something with your life! Don't make me regret standing up for you," she growled. And with that, Predaking flew away with her on his shoulder. Starscream stared at the place in the sky where she had disappeared.

"You won't regret it. I promise," he muttered. He transformed and flew off into the night sky, leaving the horror behind him.


	2. Crazy in what?

Crazy in...um...what?

Dreadwing walked down the halls of the police station, trying not to look at anything in particular. He could feel the nervous optics on his back, watching his every move. Dreadwing didn't blame them. It wasn't everyday that a former Decepticon was working with you, especially when the entire station was comprised of ex-Autobots.

Everyone he passed seemed to flinch a little and continue working, ignoring him as if they were trying to scrub him from the narrative. Dreadwing could see the the fear in their optics as they averted their gaze. They didn't talk to him unless he talked to them first, but he sometimes overheard them discussing him. Once, Dreadwing heard someone call him a devil. He often felt as if he was slowly being frozen alive, and nobody even noticed the cold nor the growing ice block. It was just as bad as the-

BANG!

He ran smack into one of the workers, a blue and green bot with optics the color of Earth's oceans. She fell back, scattering the data pads she was holding all over the floor.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention," she exclaimed apologetically, picking up the scattered data pads. Most of the workers had paused to see what was about to happen.

Dreadwing knelt down and picked up a few as well. It's no problem is was an accident," he said, reaching for the last data pad. Just as he grabbed it, the bot's hand grabbed it as well. She retracted her hand, staring at the ground. But the look in her optics was different than the judging ones of his coworkers.

"Is she blushing?" Dreadwing thought to himself. He stood up and helped her up, trying to shake his own blushing feeling away.

"I don't believe we've met. My name is-" he started.

"Dreadwing. I know, you have quite the reputation for helping some humans defeat Unicron," she beamed.

Dreadwing blinked. He expected her to say something along the lines of 'oh, you're the ex-Decepticon'. Nobody else in the station ever mentioned the time he helped save another dimension.

"Oh, my name is Oceanshell, but you can call my Ocean." she continued. Dreadwing glanced down at the data files that they were holding. "Do you need help bringing these to your office?" he asked. Ocean smiled.

"Yes thank you!' She exclaimed, and lead him to her office.

And that was the start of a friendship, a kind that Dreadwing had not had in a long time. But something would make it stronger...

2 months later

Dreadwing arrived at his station and looked around for Oceanshell.

She wasn't anywhere. He gulped, swallowing down a stab of panic. Oh, who was he kidding, she was probably running late. Why was he getting so worked up about it? He did care about her, a lot, actually, but those feelings were too jumbled for him to make sense of them. Five more minutes passed. Dreadwing couldn't take it any longer. He tapped one of her fellow detectives on the shoulder.

"Excuse me do you know where-" he started. Just then, Oceanshell ran in, panting, her bag full of data pads jumbled and disorganized.

"I'm sorry I'm late! I-um...I slept in," she panted.

"It's alright it happens to all of us," nodded her boss. Ocean flashed Dreadwing a quick smile.

"W-well I'd better get going!" she stuttered, running into her office. Dreadwing frowned.

Something was not right, but he couldn't tell. Not yet, anyway. He needed more information. Dreadwing followed Ocean in her office.

"Ocean, are you all right? You've been acting a little..." he asked, voice trailing off.

Ocean blinked. "Y-yeah, I'm fine, just a little frazzled, that's all," she explained, slamming down data files on her desk.

"Is it because of a case you're working on?" he probed.

"Um...yeah! Yeah, I've been working on this, this really tough case, but I've got it under control," she replied.

Dreadwing nodded. "I understand," he answered, starting to head back to his own office. Ocean was definitely hiding something. She had sounded extremely uncertain about the case, and for the first time, he saw fear in her optics. Which definitely wasn't normal. Ocean was never afraid around him, always at ease and laughing. He needed to get to the bottom of this, but now was not the time.

Later that night he was about to leave for his house when he stopped by Ocean's office. He noticed a gleam of light on her desk, winking out at him. He walked in to get a closer look. It was a necklace, one that he knew that Ocean wore every single day. Dreadwing picked it up and put it in his subspace, deciding to return it. A good portion of his motive was that he wanted to know what was truly bothering her. He made an abrupt turn left, following a dimly lit road. Dreadwing realized that he was flying through the poorest and most dangerous neighborhood in the city. He'd been there often on patrols, but he didn't think that anyone he knew, much less Oceanshell, lived there. She didn't seem like the type of bot that lived in a rough neighborhood such as that. The neighborhood was infamous for having multiple families sharing a single home, and for having the highest crime rate in the city. There was much violence in that neighborhood, much of it emanating from gangs.

Dreadwing followed the directions that he'd found in the directory to get to her house. Hopefully, he wouldn't have to fight a gang on the way there. Within a matter of minutes, he'd reached the right address. Ocean's house looked very worn, small, and rundown from the outside. He estimated that it had maybe four rooms at the very most. Dreadwing reverted back to his normal form and walked up to her door. Just as he was about to knock, he heard tense voices coming from the living room. He snuck to the other side of the house and peered through the window, preparing to duck if anyone looked. Ocean and another bot seemed to be arguing. The window was open a little, so Dreadwing could hear every word.

"You have NO right treat me, or anyone, this way!" Ocean cried angrily.

"I'm the landlord here, and I say I want the payment NOW!" the bot demanded. Dreadwing felt like he recognized him, but he couldn't tell where he recognized him.

"Look, I'll have it in two weeks can you try to wait that long?" Ocean asked, a hint of pleading in her voice.

The bot glared. "I'll show you waiting!" he snarled. The bot reached behind his back, and before Dreadwing could move or react, he took out a dagger and slashed Ocean's arm. Energon came gushing out, spilling onto the floor.

"AHHH!" she screamed, gripping her arm.

"Consider this a warning. next time, I won't be so merciful." He growled.

Dreadwing's optics widened in recognition.

It was Blazestone!

Dreadwing reached behind his back to get his gun, but he hesitated. He wasn't a Decepticon anymore. Murder was only the last resort. He needed to do this the right way.

Blazestone stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him. As soon as he was gone, Dreadwing ran to the front of her house and pounded on the door. Ocean peeked out and gasped when she saw Dreadwing.

"Dreadwing! How...did you?" She sputtered but Dreadwing held out the necklace and Ocean gasped. "Oh thank you!" she smiled, grabbing it with an energon-stained hand. She winced, as more energon dripped down her arm.

"Ocean...are you alright?" He asked. She sighed and allowed him to come in.

"I'm fine, I was a nurse during the war." She said and Dreadwing looked at her.

"I wasn't referring to that. I was talking about Blazestone." He said and Ocean's optics widened for a moment but she relaxed.

"You heard that?" she whispered. Dreadwing nodded. Ocean sighed, wrapping a bandage around the slash on her arm. "Dreadwing...it's not that simple...if I try to stand up too him he'll exile me and everyone in this property! I can't let that happen!" she cried, nearly on the verge of tears. Dreadwing's spark twisted a little. He never liked watching anybody cry. Whenever the Decepticons invaded a place with Sparklings, Dreadwing had always made sure to keep them out of harm's way, and shield their optics with a piece of debris or something so they wouldn't see the horrors that were unfolding in front of them. He shook those thoughts from his head before the flashbacks would start.

Dreadwing stood up. "I'll be back in a little bit. I have some friends who may help you," he reassured.

Ocean nodded. "Okay, I trust you." she said. Dreadwing froze. Only Angela had really said that to him before...he didn't know why, but it shocked him.

He walked out the door, pulled a key out of his subspace and pressed the top of it. He knew who could help.

Angela scrolled through the pictures on her phone, smiling. There was many pictures that brought back bittersweet memories.

Abby, Tess and Ember were somewhere upstairs, getting some chips and Energon. A bright light appeared next to her. She grabbed her blaster and loaded it, preparing for a fight. But that wasn't the case. When the light dimmed down, Dreadwing was in her basement, though he had to hunch down to fit.

"Hi Dreadwing!" she called happily.

"Hello Angela," he replied. There was a silence coming from upstairs.

"Is this who I think it is?" asked Tess.

"Yeah, Dreadwing is here!" answered Angela.

There was the sound of a bag crinkling, and a few seconds later, Abby, Tess and Ember came down the stairs.

"Whts ump," said Abby, with a mouthful of chips.

"What did you say?" asked Dreadwing.

Abby swallowed. "What's up?" she repeated, wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve.

"Is there a particular reason why you're here?" asked Angela, before Dreadwing could respond.

"Well, a friend of mine is in a bad situation-" he started. Tess dropped a bowl on the floor in shock. Ember's mouth hung open. Angela's eyes were widened in excitement. Dreadwing was finally making friends! Good for him!

Abby nearly choked. "You have friends? Awesome! " she exclaimed, hints of a smile threatening the corners of her mouth.

Dreadwing shot her a glare. "Why are you so surprised?" he asked.

Abby shrugged, probably not wanting to offend him any more than she already had.

"What's his name?" asked Tess.

"Her name is Oceanshell," replied Dreadwing. Angela started squealing. "You have a GIRLFRIEND? Why didn't you tell me?!" she exclaimed.

Dreadwing scowled. "She's not my girlfriend!" he snapped. Angela exchanged a look with Abby, who wiggled her eyebrows up and down suggestively. Angela burst out laughing, so hard that she could barely breathe. Sometimes Abby was a riot. She managed to regain her composure and stood up.

"Sorry, continue," Angela apologized.

"...well her landlord isn't being fair to her," he explained. Ember cocked her head in confusion.

"Who's the landlord?" Abby asked. Dreadwing sighed.

"It's Blazestone."

Angela did a spit take. Ember hissed. Tess' eyes widened and Abby clenched her fist.

"You mean the scrap heap who almost sentenced you to prison? THAT Blazestone?!" Angela asked, with anger peaking in her voice. Dreadwing nodded.

"Great, he's picking on someone who didn't do anything wrong." Abby muttered bitterly. Ember growled something to Tess and she nodded.

"What did she say?" Dreadwing asked.

"...all I can say is it involves a lot of biting." Tess explained, scratching Ember in her favorite spot behind her 'ears'.

Abby smirked and picked up her cell phone. "Getting back to the topic, I know just the bot who can help us," she cackled.

Angela stared. "Who?" she and Dreadwing asked at the same time.

"Someone who can make it look like an accident," Abby replied.

Tess grinned. "I know! I know!" she announced. Angela thought about it for a moment. Then, it hit her. "Of course! I should have known!" she exclaimed.

Abby dialed a number into her phone. "Hey, man, it's been a while!" she said into the phone. Dreadwing stared at Angela in confusion. "Who is she calling?" he asked. Angela smirked. "You'll see when he gets here," she said.

Abby continued talking. "Actually, I need a favor. Yes, it involves beating someone up," she said.

Tess, Angela and Ember giggled.

"You will? Thanks!" cried Abby. She hung up.

"What's the verdict?" asked Tess.

Abby gave her a thumbs up. "He said he'd be here in a minute," she confirmed. Just as she finished the sentence, another bright light appeared in the basement. Angela closed her eyes until it had receded. When she opened them again, Wheeljack was in her basement, kneeling in order to fit.

"You called?" he asked.

Abby ran over to him and jumped into his palm. "How are you doing?" she asked him. Wheeljack grinned. "Doing well, thanks. So, what's my assignment?" he asked.

Angela stepped forward. "Well, Dreadwing here has a friend in a bad situation. That Blazestone is being unfair to her, and we need to teach that piece of scrap a lesson so he won't bother her. That's where you come in," she explained.

Wheeljack put Abby down. "Blazestone? I'm in. Dreadwing, you're a cop, right? Are you really going to condone this kind of thing?" he asked, although Angela had a feeling that he really didn't care what the answer was.

Dreadwing stepped forward. "I condone this because it is my job to fight against injustice. And isn't that what we're doing? So, yes, I am in," he said.

Tess started applauding along with Ember. "Well said, Dreadwing," she nodded.

Abby grabbed her lightsaber. "Ok, do you know where this landlord is now?" she asked.

Dreadwing stared. "Who said you three were going?" he snapped.

Wheeljack narrowed his eyes. "I did," he said.

Dreadwing sighed. "Fine, you can come. But be careful," he warned.

Angela nodded. "I will! Careful is my middle name!" she declared.

Abby stared. "Your middle name is Denise," she said.

Tess shrugged. "Well, it could mean 'careful' for all we know," she pointed out, putting in her suit.

"Point taken," Abby conceded.

"Ready to go?" asked Wheeljack.

"Ready!" answered Angela, Abby, and Tess. Ember gave a claw up (thumbs up). Dreadwing picked up Angela Tess and Ember. Wheeljack picked up Abby. Angela put on her magnet gloves. She couldn't wait to see Cybertron.

Hopefully she would return. Tess pressed the teleporter button. And with that, they walked through the light.

"Is this the place?" whispered Tess, they flew through the streets of Cybertron.

"No. I'll let you know when we get there," said Dreadwing. What is it with young humans and repetitive questions? He would probably never know. Dreadwing noticed Angela checking for Abby and Wheeljack out of his window.

"Relax, Angela, they'll be fine. Wheeljack can keep up," he told her.

She sighed. "I know. But I'm also just looking at all these awesome buildings!" Angela exclaimed.

"Yeah, they're so cool!" chimed Tess. Ember nodded in agreement.

"It's not all like this, you know," said Dreadwing. The girls and Predacon grew quiet. They had bad parts of cities in their world, too. Surely, they understood that Cybertron was more similar to their world than they thought. Ember had already been to Cybertron, so she understood what he meant.

Wheeljack took an abrupt turn right, and stopped at the corner. "This is it," informed Dreadwing. He landed on the ground and reverted back to his regular form. Abby and Wheeljack were waiting for them.

"Remember, no killing," reminded Dreadwing.

"What about maiming?" inquired Abby.

Dreadwing sighed. "Keep it to a minimum," he said. Abby and Wheeljack exchanged a wicked grin. Angela readied her magnets.

Wheeljack took checked to make sure his sword was sharp enough. Dreadwing snuck over to the far side of the house and stared through the window. Blazestone was on his computer, looking over some records. It was the perfect time to strike.

Dreadwing signaled the girls and Wheeljack, letting them know that they were clear. Angela knocked the door off its hinges with her magnets. "Freeze!" she cried.

Blazestone shot up. "What? You again?" He sneered.

Angela folded her arms. "Yep it's me," She smirked. Tess, Abby and Ember came in behind her.

"Great, you brought friends," Blazestone muttered sarcastically.

Abby took a step towards him. "We want to have a 'chat' with you," she said cooly.

Ember growled in the back of her throat.

"Oh really, what's the worst you can do? Call your little knight? Bite my ankles?" Blazestone taunted.

Wheeljack kicked down the back door. "Then they'll shred you, starting with your ankles," he retorted. Abby ignited her lightsaber, just for intimidation's sake. Blazestone took a step back. "What do you want from me?" he asked.

"Well, we want you to stop cheating the poor and start playing fair," said Tess, cracking her knuckles. Ember spread her wings to make her look bigger and hissed.

"And why should I do that?" snapped Blazestone. Dreadwing could see him starting to reach for the dagger, slowly, so Wheeljack and the girls couldn't see. He prepared himself to take a shot. Luckily, he didn't have to. Wheeljack noticed Blazestone's slow movement and knocked the dagger off the desk, using his sword. Angela used her magnets to bring the dagger into her hand.

"Not today, mister," she reprimanded.

Abby continued on as if nothing had happened. "Well, we'll leave you alone, for starters. If you don't, we will make sure you pay for it," she threatened, holding her lightsaber up to his chest.

Blazestone frowned. "Fine. Now, can you please get out of my house?" he griped.

"Sure," answered Tess, giving him the 'I'm watching you' look, along with Ember. And as quickly as they had arrived, they left. Dreadwing followed them out. Although he probably wouldn't admit it, he was very impressed. The humans seemed to surprise him more and more every day. As soon as they were out, Abby and Angela started jumping up and down.

"That was AWESOME!" cried Abby.

"Yeah! LIKE A PRIME!" Angela exclaimed, giving Abby a high-five.

"What if he doesn't keep his word?" asked Tess.

"Then I will intervene," vowed Dreadwing.

Wheeljack nodded. "So will I. But trust me, he will keep his word. You all just scared him senseless," he smirked.

Abby stared. "Are you kidding? You were the one who disarmed him!" she exclaimed.

"But you held him at swordpoint," Wheeljack pointed out.

"Enough of this. We have to go tell Ocean the news," said Dreadwing.

"I can't wait to see her reaction," said Angela. The girls hopped into their respective bot, and in just a few minutes, they had arrived back at the house that Ocean shared.

"Be careful. It's a dangerous neighborhood," warned Dreadwing.

Tess whistled. "And I thought Baltimore was bad," she breathed.

Ember nodded in agreement.

"Ratchet told me to never step foot in here. Oh, if only he could see me now," remarked Abby. Angela laughed.

"He'd be having a panic attack," chuckled Wheeljack.

Dreadwing motioned for the four of them to follow. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door. Ocean opened the door slowly, so she could shut it fast if need be. Her face lit up when she saw him. Dreadwing could feel his spark get a little warmer around her.

"Dreadwing! I'm so glad you're-" Ocean stopped mid-sentence when she saw the girls, Ember, and Wheeljack behind him.

"Ocean, these are my, um, friends. They helped me solve your problem," he explained.

She blinked. "Wait, you did?" she asked.

Tess stepped forward. "Yep, we did. That little Scraplet isn't going to bother you any more," she said. "My name is Tess, and this is Ember." she added on an afterthought. Ember waved, smiling. The other three introduced themselves as well.

"I'm Abby."

"Hi, I'm Angela."

"My name's Wheeljack."

"Well, it's nice meeting you. I heard all about how you saved your world, and I'm really impressed," said Ocean. Suddenly, she stepped forward and enveloped Dreadwing in a hug. He tensed up for a moment, not used to the feeling, but he hugged her back. Dreadwing had not hugged anyone in centuries.

"Thank you so much," she whispered into his chest.

"Anything for you," he replied.

Out of the corner of his optics, he could see Angela start to jump up and down, only to receive dual elbows in the ribs from Abby and Tess. Ember's smile widened

Ocean stepped back. "So, I'll see you tomorrow?" she asked.

Dreadwing nodded. "You can count on it," he confirmed.

Later that night, as Dreadwing flew back to his own home, he thought about the events of that night. He never thought that he would recover from losing Skyquake, but, slowly but surely, he was mending. Dreadwing knew that there would forever be a gap in his spark, but the rest of it could be filled up too. Scars healed, after all. Ocean was the one he needed to help him heal. They needed each other. And maybe, just maybe, he could pick up the pieces of his life. It was only a matter of time.

Blazestone, was fuming. "Those measly flesh bags are getting to close for comfort. Not to mention that pathetic knight," he growled, looking down at the Autobot symbol he wore on his chest. Blazestone then looked around at his house, taking in the things that the knight and the fleshbags had broken when they busted in his house. His life seemed to be getting lower ever since those three Decepticons had their trial. Blazestone bent down and picked up the knife that the Wrecker had knocked out of his hand during the invasion. They were free! Even after all they done. So many of his Autobots comrades had died trying to end the Decepticons and their leader, and now their deaths meant nothing! All he ever wanted, for years and years, was for the death and bloodshed to mean something.

He looked over at a photo on the wall. Blaze and his squadmates stared back at him, smiling and laughing. His spark twisted, and he ached to be with them again. Dreadwing and Skyquake had offlined all of them. All, except for him. There wasn't enough energon in all the universe to wash the sins out of Dreadwing's ledger.

Blazestone frowned.

"If I want to defeat that knight, and avenge my comrades, I can no longer call myself an Autobot," he declared. He held the knife to the symbol on his chest and started scraping. Scraping away his allegiance to the past.


	3. Forbidden

Forbidden

Megatronous sat in the dark pit, staring at nothing, save for the bot in the berth near him, armor barely visible. The only thing that lit it up was the many pairs of optics, and the occasional glint of someone's weapon or armor. His mind, however, was on her. Ivy. And little Neron. Megatronous didn't like being away from the both of them so much, especially with Neron being so young, but he reminded himself that it was for their own good. Gladiators were forbidden to have families or sparkmates. They were little more than a pawns to be sacrificed for the entertainment of others. If anyone found out about his family, they would be "punished accordingly". Megatronous clenched his fists. Someday, this would all be over. Someday, the tables would turn, and this horror, this injustice would be made right. It was a longtime dream of his to overturn the system and reestablish Cybertron as a truly equal system. But he couldn't keep dreaming about it for much longer. In order to accomplish it, he would have to act. Quickly. The trapdoor was flung open, light streaming into the pit. A wave of alertness rippled through the bots. Thelonious, the bot who managed every single gladiator in the pit, marched down the stairs, data pad in hand. Megatronous stared at it. When Thelonious came, so did an assignment. And any day could be their day to fight, as well as their day to die. Thelonious pulled out a data pad with a list of names on it.

"Here's who I need to see topside: Darius, Pulse, Greensleeve, and Megatronous," he deadpanned.

The four bots stood up and approached the trapdoor, stepping over the others. Megatron's expression was placid. He was used to being called up randomly like this. But the bot on his left wasn't. The bot's optics were widened in shock. He must be a newbie. The light momentarily blinded Megatronous when he emerged from the pit, but he recovered quickly. It was a survival adaptation. Thelonious led the bots through the bright hallway, with windows twice the size of Megatronous.

The usual thought struck him: "Go. Break that window and run. You're faster than Thelonious is. Run. Nobody will know or care."

But Megatronous pressed those thoughts down. Of course they would notice. If there was anything that his so-called superiors did not tolerate, it was escape attempts. And he needed to keep a low profile. They arrived into the processing room, which was dark, but not pitch-black like the pit was.

"Listen up, scraplets. You will be fighting each other this afternoon, and one of the council members will be there, so you'd best give her a good show," growled Thelonious.

"Will it be four on four?" asked the newbie.

Thelonious frowned. "No. It will be two on two. Pulse against Greensleve, and Darius against Megatronous ," he replied. The four bots peered at each other, sizing their opponents up. Megatronous stared at Darius for a few seconds. Darius was about the same size as he was, but Megatronous had no idea how skilled he was at combat. But judging that they were being matched up for this particular fight, they must be pretty close. He wasn't fazed. He had faced worse odds in the past, however, he must not get cocky. It had been the downfall of many of his opponents. Megatronous stared at the newbie, Pulse, who was eyeing Greensleeve nervously. Megatronous didn't blame him. Greensleeve was an experienced fighter, and she was absolutely deadly when cornered. Pulse's chances of winning weren't great, and he probably knew it. But there was a determination in Pulse's optics that Megatronous couldn't help but admire. Bravery in the face of hard odds was indeed admirable. Sometimes, it was all you could do.

"Megatronous and Darius, you will be going first. Come, it's time for both of you to go to the pit," said Thelonious. Megatronous took a deep breath and followed Thelonious through the doorway. He must stay strong, and endure whatever fate was in store for him. For both Ivy and Neron.

Megatronous could hear the roar of the crowd from the holding area. It didn't faze him. In fact, it was oddly soothing. It also helped him get his head in the game. Think of nothing but the task at hand. Not Ivy. Not Neron. It would obstruct his focus. Think of them afterwards. That is, if he survived.

"Please welcome Megatronous!"

The trapdoor opened, bright light flooding into the hold. The roaring of the crowd grew louder.

Megatronous walked into the arena, waving a few times to no one in particular. There was not a single mech in the audience that he cared about, but he was willing to bet that there was quite a few that were fans of him. Megatronous stared across the arena at his opponent, Darius, who was smirking at him. Megatronous didn't smirk back. He just stared into Darius' optics, trying to intimidate him. Intimidate first, then probe the weak spot, if there was one. But Darius didn't crack. The playful smirk was gone, replaced with a dark glare.

"And...FIGHT!"

Megatronous unsheathed his sword and charged at Darius. Darius charged right back at him until they reached the center of the arena. Megatronous slashed and parried at Darius, but he couldn't find an opening in his opponent's defense. Darius swung his leg at Megatronous, knocking him to the ground. Megatronous rolled out of the way and stabbed Darius' knee. Darius winced, but still kept fighting. Though Megatronous could see that he was limping. Darius tried to compensate by attacking with more ferocity, but Megatronous was pretty sure that his energy would run out faster. Darius knew it too. He probably wanted to finish the fight as soon as possible. So Megatronous had to drag it out. He inched back a little bit, just out of Darius' range. Darius gritted his teeth and moved closer to Megatronous, but Megatronous slid out of his reach every time. He knew that he couldn't dodge forever, as the crowd would get bored. Megatronous stepped to the side and slashed at Darius. Darius dodged and stabbed Megatronous in the abdomen. Thankfully, it wasn't deep. Megatronous gritted his teeth and continued fighting. He tried to ignore the energon pulsing out of his wound, but it was hard. Now it was he that had to compensate for an injury. Darius grinned, probably thinking that he had the fight in the bag. Megatronous pretended to collapse, clutching his abdomen. Darius raised his sword for the deathblow. Megatronous rolled to the side at the last second and knocked Darius to the ground. He put his foot on Darius' chest to keep him from rolling out from under. Darius squirmed, trying to escape, but he couldn't. Megatronous looked up at the crowd, signaling them to choose Darius' fate. It was customary for gladiators to do that, though it didn't happen for all the matches. Scanning the crowd, he could see that it was pretty even. It seemed like the crowd was evenly split on whether Darius should live or die. Megatronous hoped that they'd be lenient this time. Darius had been in his original transport, and, while the two weren't friends, they weren't enemies either. Megatronous turned to the council member, who was sitting in the seat of honor. The councilwoman's optics bore into his, and they seemed to be colder than the pit at night. They seemed to say: "Gladiator scum. I care more for the leftover energon under my seat." Megatronous got that look so often, that if he got paid every time he received it, he would have been free years ago.

"Looks like it's a deadlock! Councilwoman Blackwood's vote will be the deciding one!" cried the announcer.

Blackwood stared at the two fighters, deliberating with cool optics. A few seconds later, she lazily gave him a thumbs-down. Darius' optics widened for a second, but then he controlled himself.

Megatronous raised his sword over Darius' spark. "You had a good run, comrade," he muttered, barely audibly.

Darius smiled. "Thank you for your honor," he replied, staring at the sky.

Megatronous took a deep breath and brought down the sword.

The ghost of Darius' energon clung to him, even after he washed it all off. Megatronous was used to it. But he was not resigned. Soon, he vowed, soon the senseless killings of gladiators would come to an end. He just needed an opportunity. Megatronous turned and walked down the dimly lit alley, away from the crowded area of the city. It was pretty late at night, and not many mechs were around, but he wasn't taking any chances. A few blocks later, he reached the address that he was looking for. Ivy's address. The house was nestled in between several similar ones on the block, and as such, it was very narrow. And yet, Megatronous had to admit that there was a certain charm to it, small as the house might be. He crept to the front door and knocked. The door opened.

"Megatronous!" cried Ivy, pulling him in the doorway.

"Ivy," smiled Megatronous.

Ivy hugged him close. "How did the fight go?" she asked.

Megatronous shrugged. "Ok. I had to end a spark, though," he said.

Ivy took a step back. "I'm sorry about that," she said, sympathy in her optics.

They both knew and were used to the perils of the arena, but it was still a cause for sorrow.

"Well, at least I got a decent amount," said Megatronous, changing the subject.

"That's good. One step closer to your freedom," Ivy remarked.

Megatronous nodded. "Yes. That's one of the only things I'm holding out for," he admitted.

Ivy smirked. "And what is the other-"

Before she could finish, a cry came from the other room. Neron.

"He's probably hungry again," muttered Ivy, starting towards Neron's room.

Megatronous stepped in front of her. "I'll feed him," he said generously.

He didn't see Neron or Ivy nearly as much as he should, and he felt guilty that he couldn't help Ivy out.

Ivy smiled. "Thanks," she said, handing him a bottle of energon. Megatronous crept into the nursery, bottle in hand. Neron was standing up in his crib, holding onto the bars for support. He stopped whimpering when he saw Megatronous come in. Neron let go of the bars and reached towards Megatronous, optics lit up. Megatronous smiled and lifted his son out of the crib. Very few bots could make him smile genuinely, and when they did, it wasn't often.

"Hey there," he mumbled, bouncing Neron up and down a little. He held out the bottle to Neron, who eagerly grabbed it and started drinking. Ever since little Neron was born, Megatronous had became a little softer. But he couldn't let it show in the arena. Just as Neron was about to finish the energon, he heard a squeal come from the kitchen. Megatronous ran in there to find Ivy holding a data pad, optics wide.

"What's the matter?" he asked. Ivy stared. "How much do you need to buy your freedom?" she asked, sounding like she was fighting to keep the hope out of her voice.

"Why? How much do we have now?" asked Megatronous, shifting Neron from one arm to the other. Wordlessly, Ivy held up the data pad for him to see. Megatronous' optics widened.

As of his last fight, he had barely enough to buy back his freedom.

"I'm-I can be free?" Megatronous wondered aloud. Then it hit him. "I can be free!" he cried, fighting to keep his voice down.

Ivy burst into tears of joy, jumping up and down. Megatronous picked her up with his free arm and laughed, hugging her and Neron close to him. He was finally free, after all those years. But now, things had to change.

Weeks later...

Megatronous stood on the platform, in front of an endless sea of faces. And they were all on him. It was lucky that he was used to being in front of a crowd, or else he'd probably be terrified now. Soundwave stood behind him silently, watching.

"The caste system must be abolished! It is the root of all corruption on Cybertron! And so, my comrades, we must rise up and re-write the system!" Megatronous finished. The crowd roared, making his spark swell. Maybe, just maybe this would work. It took several minutes for the crowd to quiet down, as they were extremely fired up. Their optics seemed to say "This is our chance! This is our time!". And it was. It was an opportunity to start fresh.

"Does anybody want to say something?" he asked. A few hands shot up. "You," he said, pointing to someone in the first row, "What is your name?"

The bot stepped forward, closer to the platform. "My name is Arachnid. And I have a question," she said.

"Well, go ahead and ask it," nodded Megatronous.

"What would you know about the caste system, gladiator," sneered Arachnid.

The crowd went dead silent. A flash of anger shot through Megatronous, but he pushed it down.

"More than you. I don't recall seeing you in the pits of Kaon, so I suggest that you keep your mouth shut," he replied coolly. The crowd laughed. Arachnid glared at the ground and stalked out.

"You, there, in the back, what's your name?" asked Megatronous, pointing to a bot in the back.

"I am Orion Pax. I just want to say that we ought to appeal to the council sometime soon. It is our only way of accomplishing our goal peacefully and easily," he said. Megatronous was taken aback. He had thought that they should march on the council and take back what they had lost, but it had never occurred to him to actually petition like that.

"A very good point," conceded Megatronous.

Orion smiled. "Thank you. If the council listens to us, we will be respected for generations to come for our method of reform," he said, a hint of sheepishness in his voice.

Megatronous smiled back. "You have good oratory skills, Orion. Why, if we both were to petition the council, they would be sure to listen to us," he said. He wasn't kidding in the slightest. Though Orion was younger than he was, there was something about the way he held himself and the way and manner that he spoke that hinted at a maturity beyond his years. Looks like Megatronous had found a protégé.

Arachnid shoved open the doors to the nightclub, letting them slam loudly behind her. The sound of the doors was swallowed by the music that was pumping on the dance floor. Only a few heads glanced her way as she stalked to the bar, taking a seat next to a darkened figure. "What will you be having tonight?" asked the bartender.

Arachnid didn't even glance up at him. "Just a shot of high grade," she stated. Her thoughts whirled around like a storm on the Rust Sea, their noises echoing in her head. She had investigated Megatronous, trying to find any weak spot he might have. And, oh, she hit the mother load. In following home the night after the rally, she had discovered that he had a sparkmate and a sparkling. Gladiators weren't supposed to have either. And Megatronous hadn't been a free citizen long enough to bond with another, much less to produce a sparkling.

"You requested to meet me 'ere on the grounds that you 'ad pertinent information regarding Megatronous, do you not?" asked the figure, stirring his high grade with the tip of his claw.

"Oh, of course I do," cackled Arachnid, sliding some money to the bartender, "He's a family man now, apparently, despite the limitations of certain laws."

The figure knew what she was talking about right away. "Family, eh? 'Ow precious," he mused.

"Shall I pay them a visit?" questioned Arachnid. Her energon hummed inside of her, simmering with a bloodlust that strained to come to the surface. It had been quite a while since her last mission. She loved the thrill of the hunt, the fear in a cornered bot's optics, and most of all, the energon that coated her hands after a mission.

"Aye. But you should wait 'til the proper moment," advised the figure.

Arachnid smiled, and downed her drink in one gulp. "Soon enough, soon enough. When he reaches the height of his power, I will send him tumbling down. He won't see what is coming, until his house is coated in their energon."

"So, do you think that we should write out a script or something?" asked Orion. It was getting late, and they were going over their plan to persuade the council to change. It was still rudimentary, and they had yet to plan the exact specifics.

Megatronous shook his head. "No. It should be as unscripted as possible. That way, it is genuine. But we should probably have a general outline of the points that we're going to make," he said. The door opened. A bot walked in, carrying a toolbox. "Hey, Orion, do you-" She stopped short when she saw Megatronous, no doubt recognizing him.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Megatronous is planning the council petition with me. Megatronous, this is my girlfriend, Ariel," introduced Orion.

Ariel nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you face-to-face after attending all your rallies. Do you mind if I help?" she asked.

"You are welcome to," said both Megatronous and Orion at the same time.

Ariel looked at the data pad, reading the information they had jotted down on there.

"Wow, it's really coming along! Do you have a date in mind?" she asked.

"Well, we were planning it for sometime next week," answered Orion.

Ariel's optics widened. "Next week! Whoa, that's way sooner than I thought!" she cried.

"Well, the sooner the better. We do not want our ideas to become stagnant," said Megatronous. It had happened to him a few times in the past, and he didn't want it to happen again. Ever since he'd first met Orion all those years ago, he had been helping Orion learn the ropes and improve his public speaking. It was good before, but now it was absolutely fantastic. Megatronous had no doubt that the council would be swayed by their words.

"Ariel, would you like to speak, too?" asked Orion.

Ariel shook her head. "Oh, no. You know how I am about public speaking," she said.

Orion laughed. "My bad. Do you have any suggestions?" he asked, probably trying to make up for his lapse in memory. Megatronous chuckled. He and Ivy were just like that when they began their relationship. Maybe he'd be giving them relationship advice soon.

Just then, his spark started pulsing painfully, blocking out Orion and Ariel's conversation. Megatronous' vision blurred. What was causing it? It was easily one of the most painful things he had ever endured. Megatronous felt like his spark was being slowly torn in two and burned with a blowtorch. His breathing became fast, choking pants.

"Megatronous? Are you okay?" asked Orion. Megatronous could barely hear or see him anymore. He was clutching his spark, debating whether or not ripping it out would alleviate the pain.

"Megatronous! Answer me!" cried Orion, shaking him.

"I-I'm alright. My chest is just hurting, that's all. I should probably head home," he managed to say, staggering towards the door.

"Ok. Hope you feel better!" called Orion.

As soon as Megatronous was out of the house, he broke into a sprint. His spark still was in agonizing pain. Ivy. Something had happened to Ivy! He could feel it. Megatronous probably looked crazy, barreling down the street like that. He didn't care. He just had to reach Ivy and Neron before it was too late.

"Neron, it's time for bed," said Mom, flicking the lights on and off. Neron scowled, but turned off the data pad. He was pretty tired, after all. Glancing out the window, he watched the distant, sparkling lights of the main city. Someday, he thought to himself, he would go there. With Mommy and Daddy. And they would get sweet energon and maybe even see a show! Neron smiled. Boy, did that sound good. Mama scooped him up and put him in his berth. "Good night, Neron!" she smiled, blowing him a kiss.

Neron blew her one back. "Good night, Mama!" he called. She turned off the light and shut his door. He rolled over onto his side, trying to get comfortable. Hopefully, Daddy would be back soon. Neron really wanted to see him before he fell asleep. Maybe he could stay up until he arrived! Yeah, that's what he would do! A shadowy figure stood over him.

"M-mama?" asked Neron, voice weighted with terror. The shadow stepped closer, two of its eight sharp legs pointed at him. He gulped, spark pounding, hard.

"Your mama can't help you now," sneered the voice.

Neron skidded backwards, trying to escape, but the spider bot was fast. She extended one of her pincers and stabbed him in the chest, nearly hitting his spark. Neron screamed in agony, energon gushing out of the wound. Pretty soon, he started crying as well. The spider bot was right. No one was coming to save him. Not Mama, and especially not Daddy. The spider bot laughed and raised her pincer again. Neron grabbed his chest wound and braced for impact. The nursery door burst open. Mama had come running in with one of Daddy's swords.

"Stay AWAY from my son!" screamed Mama, brandishing the sword. Neron stared in awe. Mama looked absolutely deadly with the sword, and she was actually going against the spider bot! The spider bot growled and swung her pincers at Mama, but she blocked the blows and scraped the spider bot's side. Energon trickled out of the scrape, making the spider bot even madder. Neron looked down. His hands and berth were soaked with his own energon. His stomach heaved, nearly making him throw up. Mama sliced at the spider bot's head, but the bot dodged and shot a web. The web hit Mama's leg, pinning her to the floor and knocking the sword out of her reach.

"Mama! NO!" screamed Neron. He stood up and tried to reach her, but his legs gave out. The spider bot grabbed the sword and slashed Mama's head. It wasn't deep, but it was enough to make energon leak out.

Mama turned to him. "Neron, run!" she cried. Neron's optics widened. Before he could think it through, he got up and ran from the nursery. The spider bot shot a web at him, but it missed and hit the wall. Neron burst through the door, crying and clutching his chest. Oh, Mama. Why did she send him away? Why?! A dark feeling passed over him, causing him to cry even harder. Black spots clouded his vision, and the street seemed to swirl around him. Neron collapsed to the ground, not wanting to ever get up ever again.

Cliffjumper skipped down the street, humming to himself. His parents were both on a business trip, so he could do whatever he wanted. That is, if nobody tattled on him. How could they? He was out so late, that there was no possible way that anyone he knew could catch him. Cliff kicked his ball along ahead of him. He'd been looking for a good place to practice kicking, but his search had yielded few results. A distant scream echoed through the streets, making Cliff jump. Reflexively, he kicked the ball as hard as he could. It went soaring over the houses and landed about two blocks away.

"Dang it! That's my favorite ball!" cried Cliff. He ran in the direction the ball went, slightly annoyed with himself. How was he supposed to find the ball when it was this dark? But in the back of his mind, he was still thinking about the scream. It was one of the most chilling things that he'd ever heard. It was a scream of pure agony. Probably something that could be heard at a gladiator fight, though he wouldn't know. His parents never let him go to one, and for good reason. Cliff rounded the corner, finding himself in a dark street. He shivered. It looked like the kind of street that someone would get murdered on. "Ugh, don't think about that," he muttered to himself. Cliff spotted the ball in a nearby gutter and ran over to it. He picked it up, and tripped over a small lump in the road with a puddle around it. Wait a minute. That wasn't a normal puddle. He looked down again and nearly screamed. The lump that he tripped on was a sparkling, laying unconscious with a hole in its chest.

"Scrap! What do I do?!" Cliff wondered aloud. The poor little sparkling was barely breathing, and Cliff didn't have the faintest idea of how to heal him. Then it dawned on him. His neighbor was a medic! Maybe he could help the sparkling. Mentally noting to come back for the ball later, Cliff picked up the sparkling and ran as fast as he could towards his neighbor's house. He didn't think that the good doctor would appreciate being woken up at this time of night, but Cliff had a good reason for doing it this time. He glanced behind him every once in a while, to check for pursuers. There was nobody in sight, and luckily, there wasn't an energon trail anymore. Cliff was hot and panting by the time he reached home, but at that point, the shock had worn off and panic had set in. The sparkling could die right in his arms! He'd have to get some serious therapy if that happened. Cliff shifted the sparkling to one arm and pounded on the door with his free hand.

"Ratchet! It's Cliff!" he cried, mostly so that Ratchet wouldn't murder him right away. But then again, it might not matter. The door swung open, revealing a tired and grouchy-looking Ratchet.

"What do you want this time, you little-" The medic's optics widened when he saw the injured sparkling. "What happened?!" he demanded.

"I don't know! I was looking for my ball when I found him. He's lost a lot of energon and I don't know how long he's been injured," explained Cliff, his voice cracking with fear.

Ratchet snatched the sparkling out of his arms.

"Then we've got no time to lose!" he yelled, scrambling to his equipment. It sure was lucky that Ratchet kept his medical supplies in his house on the weeks he wasn't working in the hospital. The sparkling looked almost dead, lying there on the (only) medical berth. Ratchet grabbed some tools and examined the wound. After a minute, he started patching it up. Cliff was puzzled, but he realized that Ratchet was checking to see if it hit any vital organs. By the looks of things, it didn't. Watching the medic work, Cliff was reminded of one of those hospital dramas that his mother liked to watch. The dramas were pretty exaggerated compared to this, but they had nailed the feeling of intensity. Ratchet finished closing up the wound and turned to Cliff.

"Get me four bags of energon," he said, gesturing with energon-stained hands to a cabinet across the room. Normally, Cliff would've asked questions like "Why do you have bags of energon laying around your house?" but the situation was still pretty tense, so he held his tongue. He ran back with the bags in record time (to him, at least). Ratchet attached the first bag to an IV drip, which he then hooked up to the sparkling.

"And now we wait," remarked Cliff, filling in the silence.

Ratchet sighed. "Yes. But he should be up soon. His spark rate is stabilizing," he said, scanning the sparkling.

Cliff let out a breath of relief. "That's one tough baby," he said.

"He's a toddler, by the looks of him," corrected Ratchet, cleaning off his hands.

Cliff rolled his optics. "Whatever. Same difference," he huffed.

"Don't you 'whatever' me," griped Ratchet, putting away the extra equipment.

Cliff laughed. "I can't wait to see the day when someone manages to out-sass you," he teased. "Don't count on it. I'm a medic. Nobody on this whole planet can do that," Ratchet snapped.

"What about an alien? I bet you an alien could," pressed Cliff.

Ratchet stepped closer to him. "I'm not going to be that close to an alien for him or her to even try," he said, in a tone that meant that that was the end of the discussion.

"So, how are we gonna find out who this kid belongs to?" asked Cliff, changing the subject.

"Oh, I don't know, I suppose we'll never know," said Ratchet, his voice heavy with sarcasm. Then, it dawned on him. "I know! I'll ask all the bots that I can find around where I found the sparkling!" cried Cliff.

Ratchet nodded. "Yes, please, go do that," he urged, sounding relieved. Cliff scowled, but bounded out the door and back to the crime scene.

Megatronous ran faster than he'd ever ran before. Even faster than the time he was being chased by a giant beast in the arena. He wished he was in the arena. Anything to escape this pain. The streets were dark as he sprinted through them, and there wasn't a bot to be seen. The pain in his spark suddenly cut off, leaving behind a dull ache. Megatronous knew that could only mean one of two things: 1, that Ivy was out of danger, or 2, the unimaginable had happened. He tried to convince himself that Ivy was safe. But there was an emptiness in his spark that felt like a gaping hole. About a block from Ivy's house, he could hear the sirens and see the flashing lights. The police had arrived. Just then, he stepped in a puddle of something. Energon. There was a trail of it, leading to farther down the block. Oh no. Oh no, no, no. Megatronous swallowed back an agonized scream and kept on running, away from the energon trail. He had to check the house first. An illogical voice in the back of his head kept saying that it was someone else's energon. A few houses away, Megatronous reached a barricade that had been set up by the police. A fairly sizable crowd had gathered around the barricade like a campfire, all neighbors.

"What happened here?" asked Megatronous, fighting to keep the pain out of his voice.

One of the officers turned. "There's been a homicide. A woman was found dead with a sword through her spark. We think she was trying to protect a sparkling. But we're pretty sure the sparkling didn't make it, either. There was an energon trail that stops a few blocks from here, and it is nearly impossible to survive that much of a loss. It's tragic."

Megatronous nodded and staggered backwards, nearly knocking over a kid that had just arrived on the scene.

"Sorry," the bot boy muttered, stepping aside. One of the neighbors seemed to recognize him. "Cliffjumper! Oh, don't hang around here. A sparkling and its mother just died here!" she cried, shooing the boy away. Megatronous turned away and ran in the opposite direction as the young bot, his mind not forming any coherent sentences. Finally, he reached the outskirts of the city, near the junkyard. Megatronous collapsed onto his knees and let out his pent-up scream of agony. They were gone. The only bots that he really cared about were dead forever. He would never be able to hold Neron ever again, nor would he be able to tell Ivy that he loved her one more time. His spark felt like someone had taken a saw and scooped out half of it. It would never, ever be whole again. And it would always ache. Megatronous clawed at the uncaring, unforgiving ground, cursing himself for not arriving sooner. Had he not stayed so late at Orion's, none of this would have happened. The pain increased. He realized that he had been clawing at his own sides, and now energon was dripping out. Megatronous didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore. Nothing except, perhaps, the council petition. The council. They needed to pay. And if it was in energon, so be it. Two hours ago, he would have scolded himself for thinking such things. But he was a different bot then he was two hours ago. How could he explain any of this to Orion? Orion wouldn't understand. He would just say "Megatronous, I am deeply sorry for your loss. Is there anything I can do?"

Megatronous. The name felt like a dull weapon, or a worn-out piece of armor. It didn't fit him anymore. He must get rid of it. Who was he? He was no longer a sparkmate or a father, just a revolutionary. Megatronous had died with his family. And Megatron had risen to take his place. Megatron. He liked the sound of that. Megatron sat up, collecting his thoughts. Only one rose in his head: The council will pay. The council will pay in energon.


End file.
